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ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Configuration Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.3
ManageEngine Endpoint Central delivers rapid ROI through automation, enhancing productivity and cost savings, despite some challenges.
Sentiment score
1.0
Microsoft Configuration Manager is valued for managing devices, offering cost savings and enhanced productivity, despite some Mac support challenges.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.0
ManageEngine Endpoint Central customer service receives mixed reviews, with praise for promptness and professionalism but criticisms on communication and documentation.
Sentiment score
5.5
Microsoft Configuration Manager receives mixed reviews for support, praised for resources but criticized for first-level support effectiveness.
The support team is available via chat and will create a ticket if they're not available, providing assistance even for small issues.
Manager - IT at Milliman
The technical support is good because we are in direct contact with the development team technician in India.
Ict Manager at a transportation company with 201-500 employees
While they are generally good, there could be improvements in their response times to align with our SLAs.
Infrastructure Lead at Dar Global
Their response time and first-level support quality need improvement.
Systems Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
For technical support from Microsoft, I would rate them a nine.
Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
ManageEngine Endpoint Central scales well, managing numerous endpoints efficiently with flexible deployment and integration options for various infrastructures.
Sentiment score
7.6
Microsoft Configuration Manager scales well for enterprises, though expertise and investments may enhance scalability, especially with cloud integration.
I would rate scalability as eight as well; the ability to scale is a good point.
Ict Manager at a transportation company with 201-500 employees
The product is suitable for our size, handling 800 devices.
IT Infrastructure Coordinator at NSW Government
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
ManageEngine Endpoint Central is favored for its stability, reliability, prompt issue resolution, and high user ratings despite minor lags.
Sentiment score
6.3
Microsoft Configuration Manager is praised for stability, with issues mostly due to external factors and the need for proper setup.
ManageEngine prefers not to display any information if it cannot be properly gathered.
Solutions Consultant at Team Computers
The product is very stable, especially with the cloud version.
IT Manager at Alpine Creations Ltd
We haven't encountered issues very frequently.
Manager - IT at Milliman
There were misconfigurations by our team rather than issues with the product itself.
IT Infrastructure Coordinator at NSW Government
 

Room For Improvement

Users seek better QA, Linux support, integration, UI, and cloud features with enhanced deployment, reporting, and pricing in Endpoint Central.
Microsoft Configuration Manager needs improved integration, automation, Linux compatibility, and enhanced PowerShell, UI, mobile support, and AI alerts.
It would be great if there was a smarter solution to address this issue.
IT Manager at Alpine Creations Ltd
A better monitoring tool to analyze network traffic related to patch management would be something good to see inside the product.
Ict Manager at a transportation company with 201-500 employees
Endpoint Central does not support Linux, which makes it challenging to patch Linux machines using commands.
Manager - IT at Milliman
A better command line interface for Microsoft Configuration Manager would be an additional feature I would to see in the future to make it closer to a perfect score.
Systems Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Improvements are needed for servers. Servers are still not getting it properly, so we could add the servers in Microsoft Configuration Manager for things such as OS deployment and Autopilot as well.
Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Setup Cost

ManageEngine Endpoint Central is cost-effective for endpoint management, though licensing complexity and variable pricing may apply.
Microsoft Configuration Manager pricing is high but offers comprehensive features, with value seen mainly for larger infrastructures.
The pricing is cheaper compared to other MDM products.
IT Specialist at zLink,Inc
ManageEngine products offer reasonable prices for their product quality.
Manager - IT at Milliman
I would rate the pricing as seven; it is quite expensive from my point of view for ManageEngine Endpoint Central.
Ict Manager at a transportation company with 201-500 employees
The setup cost is considered sufficient.
IT Infrastructure Coordinator at NSW Government
The pricing for Microsoft Configuration Manager is okay for me.
Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Valuable Features

ManageEngine Endpoint Central provides centralized IT management, enhancing security, troubleshooting, and software deployment across multiple operating systems.
Microsoft Configuration Manager offers scalable endpoint management, efficient deployment, vulnerability fixes, and integration, crucial for enterprises with remote operations.
ManageEngine Endpoint Central is straightforward to use and implement.
IT Manager at Alpine Creations Ltd
The patch management feature is effective and allows us to see what new patches are available and which machines are affected.
Manager - IT at Milliman
ManageEngine Endpoint Central has significantly simplified my device management practices.
Infrastructure Lead at Dar Global
If I want to get a fetch report for anything, such as hardware-related issues or group policy-related issues, I need to fetch the report by using SCCM's scripting language and remediation part.
Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The most valuable features I find in Microsoft Configuration Manager are mostly patching, deploying software, deploying images, and running custom scripts.
Systems Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
The product valuable for deployment recovery.
IT Infrastructure Coordinator at NSW Government
 

Categories and Ranking

ManageEngine Endpoint Central
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
69
Ranking in other categories
Client Desktop Management (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (3rd), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (2nd)
Microsoft Configuration Man...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
85
Ranking in other categories
Software Distribution (1st), Server Monitoring (7th), Configuration Management (3rd), Patch Management (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Systems Management solutions, they serve different purposes. ManageEngine Endpoint Central is designed for Client Desktop Management and holds a mindshare of 21.1%, down 42.2% compared to last year.
Microsoft Configuration Manager, on the other hand, focuses on Server Monitoring, holds 4.4% mindshare, down 6.7% since last year.
Client Desktop Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ManageEngine Endpoint Central21.1%
Symantec Client Management Suite13.9%
Clarity CA11.6%
Other53.4%
Client Desktop Management
Server Monitoring Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Configuration Manager4.4%
Zabbix18.1%
Checkmk8.1%
Other69.4%
Server Monitoring
 

Featured Reviews

SR
Manager - IT at Milliman
The user-friendly interface and effective patch management streamline server maintenance
There are times when we have a particular software installed in our system, but we do not receive patches for it from Endpoint Central. The support team mentions that the software may not be updated in their database yet, which requires us to raise a request for their database update. This lack of regular database updates has been an issue. Additionally, Endpoint Central does not support Linux, which makes it challenging to patch Linux machines using commands. Support for Linux, such as CentOS or Ubuntu, would be highly beneficial.
JunedBedrekar - PeerSpot reviewer
Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Have effectively deployed patches and applications while integrating with cloud solutions
The features I find most valuable in Microsoft Configuration Manager are replication and scripting. If I want to get a fetch report for anything, such as hardware-related issues or group policy-related issues, I need to fetch the report by using SCCM's scripting language and remediation part. The inventory collection features of Microsoft Configuration Manager are good because we always prefer the inventory. We do it by using the script language. We use remote management capabilities in Microsoft Configuration Manager. Remote management capabilities are useful if the user is not providing access; we can use the backend users to update the group policy and sync the devices. These are the main features we require.
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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Client Desktop Management solutions are best for your needs.
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Answers from the Community

NC
Content Manager at PeerSpot
Dec 1, 2021
Dec 1, 2021
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily and use the chat feature to speak with any user. In addition, using this product has helped me identify outdated PCs and has been very useful when I have needed to assist with remote control and softwa...
2 out of 5 answers
SD
Technical Lead at HCL Technology
Nov 23, 2021
My recommendation is to use MS Intune as a solution and you can drop both SCCM and ManageEngine Desktop Central.  Intune is the best solution for managing mobile devices and endpoints. You can also manage your servers but there will be some difficulty in managing on-premises servers. 
MW
Works at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
Nov 24, 2021
Quest's Unified Endpoint Management - please have a look at this solution: easy to manage, best for mass task deployment, comprehensive and customized reporting.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Government
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise35
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise64
 

Questions from the Community

How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...
What do you like most about ManageEngine Endpoint Central?
Well, what we like is that it catch actually a lot of features constantly upgrading. So all the three maybe there there were some features as the tenant on the earliest version. Now it's it's almos...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ManageEngine Endpoint Central?
Regarding the pricing of ManageEngine Endpoint Central, it depends on the region. In India, it is very cost-effective and provides great value. In other regions such as the UAE, US, or UK, the pric...
How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...
What do you like most about SCCM?
One of the standout features of SCCM is its application management capabilities. It allows us to create packages efficiently and deploy them to specific groups within our network. This streamlined ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SCCM?
The setup cost is considered sufficient. It is not significant enough for us to consider a change at the moment.
 

Also Known As

ManageEngine Desktop Central, Desktop Central, ManageEngine Desktop Management MSP
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM ), Microsoft SMS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Strathallan School, BMI Healthcare, Comercial Kywi, First Priority Federal Credit Union, Gerab National Enterprises
Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Find out what your peers are saying about ManageEngine, Broadcom, Quest Software and others in Client Desktop Management. Updated: December 2025.
879,455 professionals have used our research since 2012.